New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-01-23
drowned further remarks from the VirRinian, most
noted rs a constitutional lawyer and az o W.T.
ALASKA.

j d
be a great want until the progress OF conmerc'"
cpterprise has opened many new avenues OF eX-
pIoration into that forbidding country III "c
meantime Mr. Elliotts book is i'll most respects "
decided advance upon its predecessors an" "l
one point il presents us WIN he" ihioi ro'
of the highest interest and importance Tho
autbor is connected with the Smithsonian III
stitution and it was under the auspices CT thac
organization that he made the visits TO the
Seal Islands of Behring's Sea in 1S'2-lsf6, when
form the basis of the present volume. We
infer from his ambiguous preface that he has
endeavored to present not only record OF his
own observations, but compendium of the n'l-
neroIs and generally fragmentary narratives OF
other travellers 1t is not always possible TO tell
whether he is compiling or giving his personal
experiences lie describes with minute detail
! the physical features of the great semi circle OF
broken, mountainous. picturesque coast which
sweeps from below Sitka to the Aleutian lslands
but il is evident that his acquaintance with lhis
region is not recent and he has nothing to tell
us of the present condition of the American SET
Elements in the Sitkan archipelago. whaU he
writes uron this subject being clearly out OF
date lie finishes his book with an account oil
the Yukon country which presume TO be en-
tirely compilation. although he makes no al'usion
to the well known description of that territory
by Mr. Dali. The best part Of his book Is the
middle which describes in six animated chapters
the islanders of KaGialS and the Mcutian chain
the quest OF the sea-Otter, and-abovc all else
the remote Seal Islands and the wonderful life
OF which they are the scene. Here Mr.. Elllott
has found q fresh and exciting subject. He pre-
pared himself for it by long hard course, and
he treats 1t with fun and rare knowledge
The Prbylov Islands, st. Paul and st. George
lie in the heart OF Behring's Sea, about two hun
drcd miles from any other land. They are ABOUT
thirty miles apart. small, wrapped in almost con
tinuous fOgs, difficult Of approach on account OF
winds and currents, and 50 inconspicuous that
they long eludcd discovery; even now vessels
often hover around them for days without being
able to find them. In the last century the Rus
sian furhunters were much puzzled 10 track the
seals which passed through the channels of the
Aeutan chain to their breeding places They
spent eighteen years in the search at last one OF
their sailors, PribylOv, after securing Behring'S
Sea for three summers ran against st George IN
fog and heard the air tromble with the roar
Of the seals. That was one hundred years ago
and ever since PribylOvs discovery the two
little islands have been the chief scalhuntng
grounds of the world. They were included in the
sale of Alaska TO the United States, and arc now
leased by our Government to the Alaska Com
mercial Company. which has monopoly OF the
catch under the regulations and supervision Of
the Secretary Of the Treasury. Probably there
is no place the globe where the habits OF the
seal be studied so thoroughly rs on the
Pribylov Islands. 1t fortunate therefore
that competent ma, uralist like Mr.. Elliott under
took the arduous duty Of remaining at the rock |
cries, summer and winter watching the ANIMALS |
at all seasons He went out, at the suggestion /
OF Professor :. +. Baird in the summer Of 1872, !
stayed on ST. Paul Island through the following !
min az cd bic visits in nd
The result is admirable treatise on the fur /
SEAL crowded with fresh information and Illus /
trated with original drawings which, we may re-
mark in passing, far more successful than /
the authors crude sketches Of landscape AMI pcO |
pie years residence at the seal-rookcrlcs is
by a holiday experience Besides the |
discomfort OF life in atmosphere OF incon
ceivablc stcnchcs. the adventurous observer has
to bear the rgors Of a singularly severe climate.
There are only two seasons n short fo2Gy sum
mer with an average temperature of 46 or 80
degrees in the warmest month, and winter OF
furious gales laden with snow and sleet, when
il is rare that the ST outest man walk abroad
The average temperature is not very low; but
nobody can breast the wind. Mr.. Elliott, watch
ing every chance to creep out between storms
was able to leave the house only three times |
during q whole winter.
Extraordinary statements have been made about !
the number Of seals on these islands. Estimates
running up into the millions. OF no value, |
for few persons have any definite idea what a
million is. Mr.. Elliott. however succeeded in |
making something like genuine calculation, and
his method ingenious enough to be described in
detail The seals not scattered over the
islands, but they frequent certain wcldclncd
breeding places where the cOniguratiOn OF the
coast gives them access from the sea. Now Mr..
a1 la curiau fact
tribute themselves these grounds with almost
perfect regularity The number Of seals on any
square rod Of ground is always about the same
as the number OH every other square rod by
measuring all the breeding grounds, therefore,
and counting the seals on given area at the
height Of the seasOn-JuN 10 to 20-he reached
q reasonable approximation to the total number, |
which he places at the imposing figure Of
4,7OO,O The annual increase OF this vast
multitude is about 100000 and after making
a liberal allowance for the destruction Of young
pups by sharks and other natural enemies it is
almost certain that the number which reach the
age OF reproduction is considerably in excess of
the limit Of 900 to which the yearly catch
OF the Alaska Commercial Company is restricted
by their contract with the Government Mr..
Elliott is convinced that this contract is faith
fully observed and that under the present system
Of inspection it could not be seriously violated.
lie speaks very highly Of the admnstr ration OF
the company, the great improvement they have
made in the physical condition Of their Aleutian
employees, and the good order maintained in their
settlement. There about 400 people on the
two islands, three fourths Of them st. Paul's.
Only eighteen are whites. The Aleutcs n
somewhat mixed race. with considerable in
fusion Of Russian blood. They belong 10 the
Russo Greek Church, which seems to exercise a
good influence over them, and our author com
mcnds their manners and disposition, although
it must be confessed that they neither tenn
perate chaste.
| The island life of the seals however, is far
more interesting than that of the human beings.
They arrive from The deep in May. The bulls,